Fort Ord East Garrison developers confident in housing market

Developers of the planned East Garrison community in Fort Ord are poised to jump into what they are confident is a recovering housing market.

On the verge of securing building permits for the first market-rate homes on the site, Union Community Partners Vice President Jim Fletcher said Friday that construction of about 11 model homes could start by the end of next month, in time for a formal groundbreaking ceremony for the first phase of the 1,400-home project off Reservation Road.

Fletcher said the goal is to finish a marketing headquarters by early summer, followed by the 11 homes, each with a different floor plan, in three separate "communities." Home sales would start by the end of summer. The first residents, he said, could move in by the end of the year.

Fletcher said the development team is convinced the housing market has recovered enough that the homes will be sold steadily over time, noting his company's success with other housing developments in Soledad and Morgan Hill.

He said there is very little new housing in the local market.

"We believe the market is there," he said. "We see momentum building. We believe in Monterey County and East Garrison and this project. This is the first high-end production housing (locally) in a long time. There are a few skeptics. We'll see by the end of the year."

Monterey County Supervisor Dave Potter, who has played a key role in overseeing the redevelopment of Fort Ord, said he was thrilled to hear East Garrison's first homes are on the way. He said it will be interesting to see how the housing market reacts to the new supply.

"This is the first project out of the chute since the recession," Potter said. "These guys will test the market and answer the question: Is the recession over and is the housing market coming back?"

Fletcher said the homes will range in size from about 1,500 to 2,900 square feet, and sell from the low $400,000s to low $600,000s.

The first phase of the project is designed to include 441 homes, neighborhood parks, open space, a community park and the beginnings of a town center.

The other two phases of the project call for 959 more housing units, including affordable housing, an arts district using historic Army buildings, a town center with shops, a fire station, library and several parks.

Under the development agreement between the county and Union Community Partners, all market-rate lots are to be sold by March 2016, and all market-rate housing units are to be ready for occupancy by March 2021.

The developer took over the project in 2009 after it fell into bankruptcy, and signed a development agreement with the county in 2011 that kept the original project proposal essentially intact.

In related news, the Board of Supervisors is set to consider on Tuesday accepting recently completed infrastructure — roads, streetlights and the like — from UCP as part of a series of agreements aimed at setting responsibilities for operations and maintenance.

Under one of the proposed agreements, UCP would handle temporary maintenance of the on-site infrastructure until the 315th market-rate unit is sold, allowing time for the county-run East Garrison community services district to establish sufficient revenue to assume maintenance responsibilities itself.

Another proposed agreement calls for the community services district to assume control over maintenance of county roads on the perimeter, including Intergarrison Road, Watkins Gate Road and West Camp Street. The East Garrison Homeowners Association would take over maintenance of interior neighborhood parks, common areas and private front yards, as well as recreation programs.

Fletcher said average homeowners association fees have been estimated at about $130 per month.

Meanwhile, the 66-unit Manzanita Place affordable housing apartment project at East Garrison is finished, and new residents are slated to begin moving in by mid-May, with a grand opening set for late summer. They will be the East Garrison community's first permanent residents.